Mashatu is a place of great contrasts. The seasons colour and coat this place in very different livery. Late winter and early spring, before the rains, can be hard, especially for the herbivores. Even the Impala browse in early spring because their is almost nothing to graze on. The Elephant can be seen at river bends digging for water. The  water table is usually not too deep. The predators have the best time of it in winter and early spring. This spring was no exception, but the game generally looked to be in much better condition than last year, around the same time.

Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Many predators large and small can be seen in Mashatu. Some are hunters and some scavengers. When the primary predators such as Lion and Leopard are busy, the scavengers have a much easier time of it. One predator which is highly adaptable is the Black Backed Jackal. We saw many of these Jackal during our last visit. Often we would see a solitary animal lying in the shade, if it was vey hot, or foraging in the early morning or early evening. This character was lying in the shade as the afternoon sun was fierce.

We were in Mashatu Game Reserve for four days in early October. The first two were hot. On the second day, the temperature was 37 degrees centigrade in the shade at 15h30. Two days later we had to wear jackets all day because it was so cold – but that is the bush for you. The coldest I have ever been was when a small group of us were caught in a thunderstorm on side of the mountain just above Injasuti in the Drakensberg Mountains. By six in the evening it was absolutely pitch black and we could not see our way making it too dangerous to proceed. We could not get back to camp so had to spend the night in the pouring rain on the side of the mountain about half a kilometre from the camp. Although this took place in mid-November, it was the coldest I have ever been..

 ‘You can flirt with mother nature but don’t ever think she is your chick’

These words will ring in you ears if you don’t respect the bush.

Back to Mashatu, on the same afternoon we saw the Black Backed Jackal, we found a pride of Lions and this Lioness was wisely lying in the shade. It was late afternoon but still very hot. Of course most of the predator action takes place in the hours of darkness when you are telling tall stories around the camp fire about your wildlife encounters. The two predators you will hear most often at night are ‘whooping’ of the Hyaena and high pitched yapping of the Jackal. You might be lucky to hear a Lion roaring at night or even a Leopard coughing in the early morning or late afternoon. Hearing these large predators at night stirs a deep primal reaction in us.

The second hot afternoon, we found two Hyaena mothers lying in the sand at around 17h00. It was still very hot and they were panting heavily while their youngsters suckled. One thing I found interesting was both mothers licked their forelegs and then rubbed their faces on their forelegs. This way they wet their faces so that any passing breeze would provide some cooling relief.

Considering how aggressive these predators can be in the hunt or when trying to push a Lion or Leopard off a kill, it is fascinating to see how incredibly gentle they are with their cubs.

Hyaenas are intriguing predators mainly because their behavior can appear strange, hideous, bizarre and downright peculiar to us.

One morning around 9h00, we came across a Lioness and her cub feeding on an Eland carcass. They had lots of company. There were four Black Backed Jackals hanging around out of harms way and a pair of Tawny Eagles who had decided it was worth the wait. It is one thing to see the Lioness stripping flesh off the bones but it is not until you hear and see a Lion crushing bone that you realize how strong their jaws are. This Lioness  was feeding for about 45 minutes before she decided it was getting too hot and dragged the remains of the Eland carcass in to the shade of a nearby bush.

This Lioness must have dragged this Eland carcass about thirty metres in the blazing sun with her one year old cub hanging on and playing with its moving meal. This was one really strong female.

A short while later, the same cub popped out of the bushes to have a look in the direction of an interesting sound. You can see by the size of his paws, he has a lot of growing still to do.

We were also fortunate enough to see a female Cheetah and her remaining cub. We understand there had been three cubs but two were killed some time before. We saw these Cheetah just south east of  Pole Hill late one afternoon in an open area ideal for hunting. Something must have spooked this youngster because he was very nervous, constantly looking behind him as we was walking along with his mother.

Looking at the fragility of this Cheetah cub you realize what an incredible task it must be for this mother Cheetah to bring up her cub amongst Lion, Hyaena, Leopard and Jackals. All of which would not hesitate to kill the cub.

The next morning, we found the Cheetahs in the same area we left them the evening before. The Cheetah mother had killed a Impala earlier that morning judging from how little had been eaten. The Impala had been dragged under what looked to be a Monkey Puzzle bush. When we first arrived the mother lay some distance away from the cub. Cheetah use this tactic so that all the family members are not compromised at the same time. Both mother and cub were on high alert, but the mother kept watch while her cub tucked in. The cub was still very skittish and kept looking around after every few mouth fulls.

The wind was blowing and this is when most animals in the bush are on high alert. The wind muffles sound and disperses scent so their normal senses are compromised. Eventually, the Cheetah mother walked around the bush to make sure nothing was lurking which she did not know about. This Cheetah mother had a tracking collar so was obviously part of a Cheetah research project.

As I mentioned earlier, on our last afternoon, the wind was blowing quite hard and it was cold. This Black Backed Jackal was tucked up in a tight ball, dozing.. They never seem to fall asleep. Nose tucked under his bushy tail, he seemed well insulated from the cold. It is also interesting to see this Jackal was lying in a thick bed of leaves, which must have given him warmth and camouflage.

On our last evening down next to the Majali River close to where the White-Fronted Bee-Eaters had their nesting colony last year, we came across this forlorn Hyaena. This poor animal had been mauled. Probably not by a lion but more likely by other Hyaenas. It had lost both ears, possibly in a skirmish with other Hyaenas and its had lost the lower part of its left hind leg.

The incredible thing about this Hyaena was that as mauled as it was and in obvious pain it had not given up. It was thin but did not look to be badly mal-nourished. Despite its desperate state, this character was not about to give up.

Nature offers many paradoxes. It is very unlikely that you see the same thing in the same place the next day, be it a bird or an animal. I cannot count how many days I have spent in the bush and I am constantly surprised by new behavior, unusual interactions, new scenes and the ongoing newness and learning in it all.

We should not pretend to understand the world only by the intellect. The judgment of the intellect is only part of the truth.

Carl Jung

Seek to understand nature, marvel at its interconnectedness and then let it be.

Have fun

Mike

We had a superb trip to Mashatu Game Reserve in early October and were privileged to have had wonderful sightings of predators  and Elephants (for another post). One of the many aspects about Mashatu I love is that the birding is excellent no matter what time of the year you go. October is too early for the migrants so no Cuckoos, or Carmine Bee-eaters, no Wahlbergs Eagles or Steppe Buzzards. The residents though are always superb, with variety and colour.  Mashutu is very dry after winter but  when you looked around at what there was to eat, the game looked to be in surprisingly good condition this year. The predators were having a good time and it was interesting to see how the raptors were adapting to this.

John Berry

The Kori Bustard is a resident, meaning it lives in the area all year long and does not migrate. This is a large robust bird, which feeds on pretty much what the Secretary bird eats, such as mice, small birds, insects, frogs and what ever it can find. These birds have massive wingspans and are one of the largest flying birds in Southern Africa. You are likely to see them in pairs but sometimes you might find a family group of up to six patrolling the open areas.

The Bee-eaters never fail to impress, We saw numerous White-fronted and Little Bee-eaters. The White-fronted were not flocking in breeding colonies but were scattered along the river. There is obviously enough insects for them to eat but  not enough for the larger Carmines, which migrate north in the winter looking for more food. All the Bee-eaters are extravagantly coloured. The aspect that amazes me most about the colouring of these birds is that most of us would never think of combining the colours you see in their plumage, but yet mother nature pulls off her palette combinations magnificently.

Often in the bush you will hear the bird before you see it. The Hoopoes have an onomatopoeic name, meaning their name sounds like their call, which is instantly recognisable in the bush. We disturbed this character who was  foraging on the ground and it flew up into some spiderweb draped branches. This is another example of stunning, but unimaginable colour combinations.

Around the camps there are wonderful opportunities to see a huge variety of birds, partly because they can find water there, to say nothing of a little extra food. The Tropical Bou Bou’s was an infrequent visitor but could often be heard all around with their vast medley of calls.

White Crowned Helmeted Shrikes were frequent visitors coming through the camp in flocks of six to eight around early afternoon each day. They chatted away to each other feeding as they went but unfortunately their visits  were brief.

The rich oboe sounding call of the Black-Headed Oriole was also heard each day. Striking colours  finished off with a blood-red eye and pinkish beak. The colour combo works with the black head and vivid yellow body. Unfortunately this character appeared to have a broken foot which had healed. Nature never appears to be sorry for itself, it just gets on and adapts.

We saw Cardinal, Golden-tailed and a pair of  Bennett’s Woodpeckers. When they are tapping on a branch or tree trunk, I am never sure whether they are communicating to each other through a form of morse code, looking for food or starting a  hole for a future nest. The left hand image is of  a female Bennett’s Woodpecker, which posed just long enough to get a shot. The strut-like tail feathers are clear and are used to brace the bird when they are clinging to vertical and overhanging branches, enabling them to peck more effectively. The right hand image is of a rather scruffy looking male Golden-tailed Woodpecker who had come down for a drink in the heat of the day.

Many of the birds seen flying through in the dry bush or hopping around foraging on the ground create splashes of colour like sparkling jewels. This Grey Headed Bush-Shrike was a regular visitor and was usually heard before it was seen. It has this long haunting whistle. The Afrikaans name is ‘Spookvoe’l or ‘ghost bird’ because of its long loud and haunting ‘oooooooop’ like whistle. Its call is unmistakable in the bush and always stirs excitement because you know that you will be richly rewarded when you eventually see it. This bird is stunningly beautiful. It is a large Shrike with a distinctive small hook at the tip of its beak. As you can see from the next three images, this bird presents a blaze of colour in the grey-brown dry bush.

“In order to see birds it is necessary to become part of the silence.”

Robert Lynd

Insectivores abound in Mashatu. The next image is of an Ashy Flycatcher, which is similar to a Dusky but has a white eye-ring and all black beak. It is an ash-like blue-grey colour. This little chap must have taken a break from hawking insects from its perch to come down for an afternoon drink.

The next two images are of two different Tawny Eagles sitting patiently waiting in a large dead tree in the blazing heat. Below them was a Lioness and her cub feeding on an Eland they must have killed the evening before. The Jackal were also hanging around out of harms way. These Tawnys watched the activity on the ground intently but appeared content to wait for the mistress at the dinner table to leave before coming down to feed. There was still plenty of meat on the carcass by the time the Lions had finished gorging themselves. We left before the Tawnys had come down to scavenge.

We saw many Laughing Doves, and they all looked to be on good condition, so obviously there is enough seed in the sand and soil just waiting for a little rain to carpet Mashatu in green with yellow flowers. It is such a common bird but we seldom take the time to look at its subtle, soft pinks, browns and greys. It has beautiful colouring in a gentle way. Doves suck up the water when they drink and do not have to throw their head back to swallow like a Pigeon The other notable distinction is that doves walk on the ground because they are terrestrial seed-eaters while pigeons usually hop on the ground as they are aboreal fruit-eaters, more often than not.

You will see many Grey Louries, also called Grey Go-Away Birds in Mashatu. They also have an onomatopeic name. Like all Louries they look much better than they sound. These birds are highly sociable clustering in groups. They seem to run up, down and through the branches of trees and are highly dexterous. All Turacos are endemic to Africa. The Grey Go-Away Bird is the only one that likes the dry thornveld, all the others prefer dense trees or forests

We had been watching a small family of Elephants which had come down to a dry river bed and were digging for water. After watching their successful endeavours for about half an hour, we were just about to move off when the game ranger spotted this Giant Eagle Owl resting in the tree above us. They can be really difficult to see because they perch in dense shade, close to the tree trunk which adds to the camouflage. As you can see from the first of the two images, these are very big birds. I have only ever seen them singly. The day was overcast and there was a lot of wind which made the photography tricky, especially with long lenses. It did not rain but hopefully the disturbed weather was heralding the onset of the rainy season.

I could hear the Black Collared Barbets singing their duo but only saw this Crested Barbet. It is always a treat as they have lavishly coloured plumage. You are likely to hear them before you see them with their sustained, , ‘trrrr’ sounding trilling  call. This Barbet seems to be equally at home in suburbia as it is in the deep bush.

The Starling family is a particularly striking group. I have been fortunate enough to see the beautifully coloured Superb Starlings in the Masai Mara and Plum-coloured Starlings in Kruger Park. You will see many Long-tailed (or Meves) Starlings in Mashatu. They are very talkative and seem to mimic many birds. In the afternoon sun their feathers are an iridescent blue. We also saw flocks of Wattled Starlings but not the large flocks you will see in summer when they seem to capitalise on the insects disturbed by herds of Elephant wandering through the grass and bushes.

I start to wobble in my identification of LBJs (little brown jobs) such this next pair. I think they are Neddicky’s, a type of Cisticola with a brown crown and light greyish-brown belly and darker grey-brown back. These two were having a wonderful bath in the intense afternoon heat. It was 37 degrees centigrade in the shade that afternoon.

These midget beauties are eye-catching. They are Blue Waxbills and can often be seen in small flocks with canaries eating grass seeds on the ground in front of you. It is not often you see blue colouring in animals or birds in the wild.

There were a sprinkling of Red-billed Buffalo-Weavers to be seen in the thornveld along the rivers. The males are black and the females a grey-brown colour. These  large Weavers make probably the most untidy nest of all the Weavers and build their nests in large communal structure. Whenever I see large these communal nests, I am always on the look out for raiding cobras.

I must have thousands of Lillac-brested Roller images, but every time a see one in the bush, I cannot help myself. They are just exquisitely beautiful birds and look even more spectacular when they fly. It is easy to see why Zulu King Mzilikazi had its feathers in his headdress. In Zimbabwe, in our youth, we used to call this bird the Mzilikazi’s Roller. The Rollers were doing their rolling flying displays. They are incredibly agile fliers and their high-speed rolls are breath-taking.

I hope this handful of avian images give you a sense of the variety and colour these birds add to the bush in Mashatu, especially when it was so dry. When we reluctantly left, the clouds were building so hopefully the rain is not far away.  The rain transforms Mashatu from an extremely dry-looking bushveld into a verdant green paradise carpeted in yellow flowers – it is spectacular.

Even in its dry condition in spring, the Apple Leaf trees were in covered in their subtle mauve flowers, which they dropped to make an attractive carpet at their feet.

I  don’t ask for the meaning of the song of a bird or the rising of the sun on a  misty morning. There they are, and they are beautiful.
Pete  Hamill

Seek to understand nature, marvel at its interconnectedness and then let it be.

Have fun

Mike

My brother Jerry invited Helen and I to spend a couple of days with him in Mashatu in early October. On the Friday afternoon, the first day of our sojourn, we went out for a game drive at around 16h30. It was too hot to go out any earlier.

We found this young male Leopard lying at the base of a Mashatu tree at around 17h00. The shadows were long and the light golden with gentle contrast – perfect!

This young male was very relaxed with us nearby. Leopards often come down from their aboreal resting place late in the afternoon. During the heat of the day they can be found sprawled out on a horizontal branch, legs dangling either side of it. High up in the branches, where they are safe, the shade and breeze must provide relief from the heat.

After having woken up from a day time sleep, the late afternoon is a time when Leopards often lie on the ground looking all around them taking in the surrounding sights, sounds and smells, This is the time when they are usually well rested and hungry.

Being able to get close up images of this Leopard with a decent prime lens was a real privilege. These are magnificently beautiful animals. It is hard to think that their rosette-covered coats are used as carpets, karoses and people’s adornment.

After about fifteen minutes, this male got up and started to walk away. In the late afternoon sun, the colours were saturated and the rich browns and fawns seemed to glow.

Fortunately for us, this male wandered over to a nearby anthill and promptly lay down again. He used the anthill to hide behind and often peered out from behind it directly into the westerly sun – something must have caught his attention – we could not see what.

This young male Leopard was aware of us but essentially ignored us. The light was perfect. This was one of those times in the bush when the surroundings seemed to be in exquisite harmony.

He was still in the process of waking up and yawned often showing us his perfect teeth, a sure sign of his youth, to say nothing of his unblemished face. Territorial fights will come later.

Their cat-like qualities are very evident, but don’t be fooled. This is one serious predator adapted to surviving on his own.

Confident, relaxed and ready for the evening when he has the advantage.

After a further 20 minutes or so, something caught his attention and he decided to get up and go and investigate. I particularly liked his body posture as he got up and crept out from behind the anthill.

His eyes locked in focused attention. This is always a time when a wildlife photographer gets excited thinking he or she may just be lucky enough to get mesmorising images of the stalk and kill.

It was not to be, with his attention broken, he stopped not looking at anything in particular, but his acute senses were still picking up every sight, sound and scent.

He seemed to use the anthill as a shield, all the while lifting his nose to catch scents carried on the warm evening breeze, eyes darting to every movement and his flicking ears reacting to every sound.

”’

After a short while, now fully alert,  he walked off in the direction of what had first caught his attention. When we drove off, it was in the direction he had been looking, and there was a small herd of Impala grazing about 70 metres from him.

I leave you with this last image to show his immaculate camouflage.

‘

October is the end of the dry season in Mashatu. The storm clouds were beginning to build. The rain was not far off. The predators were thriving but the herbivores were struggling. Impala were resorting to browsing on Shepherd tree leaves and eating dry Mopani leaves which must have been much like crisps. Surprisingly, the herbivores were in better condition this year than the same time last year probably because of the floods at the beginning of the year.

The photographic opportunities on this trip were superb. I will compose another couple of posts in the following weeks which will show other predators such as Lion, Hyaena, Cheetah and Jackal in the Game Reserve, and in the ‘Land of Giants’ images of Elephants. I will also post of some of the bird images taken around the Rock Camp Lodge. This area is a birder’s paradise.

A big thank you to Jerry for a wonderful few days in a very special place with special people.

A Leopard Lay

By Linda A. Copp

A Leopard lay amidst the trees,
hiding in its greeny leaves,
Lazing in the noon day sun,
with no desire, none to run.

Listening to the rustling breeze,
he cautions it to, “Hush, don’t breathe.
Give no signal, that I lie
Upon this perch, up in the sky.” 

His hooded eyes seem half asleep,
His body quivers, never sleeps.
For as quick as lightening, he’ll flash down,
On any prey, yet, make no sound.

So, people prowling on the ground,
Take care to more than look around.
Dangers lurking everywhere,
both on the ground and in the air.

And wildcats, well, they seldom sleep.
Dreams of theirs don’t run too deep.
Their nature makes them keen and fierce,
their teeth are sharp, they claws will pierce.

A Leopard lay amidst the trees,
suddenly he hears.
He sees.
Now, he’s up and through,
its greeny leaves.
Look up.
He’s up.
Oh! LOOK UP!
PLEASE

Seek to understand nature, marvel at its interconnectedness and then let it be.

Have fun

Mike